Innehållsförteckning för Aug/Sept/Oct. 2020 från Residential Tech Today

There was a time – say around 1967 – when it seemed like the post-World War II baby boom generation would be young forever. That revolutionary demographic has become the grandparents of today, but unlike their “Greatest Generation” predecessors, they’re used to making their own rules, even when it comes to healthcare. Long before the global pandemic made us reconsider how we spend our time indoors, the Boomers were already looking for new ways to avoid “the home” through home health tech. Now, Gen X and Millennials are exploring the benefits of wellness tech, too. Here are some useful stats related to a healthy home.…

Premium sound quality is the prime driver behind High-Definition Audio in both content and system sectors. Content creators like Capitol Records and Sony, with Super HiRez service, launched a high-definition initiative years ago to defend listeners from sound compression. Compression minimizes file sizes and results by omitting ranges and layers from audio content. High-definition audio recaptures the full sound elements and allows louder volumes and greater sound fidelity. Universal Remote Control researched audio offerings for premium home automation systems and realized an opportunity existed. Many premium audio systems were missing features and benefits from expanding audio streams and a high number of zones. This opportunity led to the creation of URC’s HDA (High-Definition Audio) portfolio. Led by the HDA 8100 Multi-Zone Amplifier, the product line features eight stereo amplified zone…

The rebirth of Palm Desert’s Wave House, a mid-century modern dwelling in California originally designed by architect Walter S. White, turned out a master class by Stayner Architects in how public-private collaboration can not only restore but repurpose historic buildings. Featuring a look from the past, but functions for today, this one-of-a-kind project is making waves in the desert and breathing vibrant new life into a historic home. Prior to the renovation of the Wave House, four design goals were set. The first was to restore the dwelling to its period roots while improving sustainability and usability. The second was to honor the union between indoors and outdoors celebrated in White’s original design. Third, the designers wanted to re-create the light and overall feel of the house as it was…

We’ve all encountered some hiccups, glitches, and aggravation while downloading files, streaming video, and conducting a videoconference. What’s causing the issue? Is it the ISP service? Is there a line down in the neighborhood? Maybe your computer needs a tune-up? Most likely, these Wi-Fi woes stem from the way a home network was designed and installed. Maybe the techs from an ISP put in the equipment or perhaps the router came from an online outfit. That’s mistake #1. It takes a much higher grade of equipment installed by a knowledgeable professional to have a home network that’s fast, reliable, consistent, and maintains peace within a household where everyone can work, study, and play online at the same time. Mediocre equipment installed poorly is only the tip of the aliment iceberg.…

As 2020 rolls along, it’s becoming more apparent that the COVID-19 pandemic may be changing the way we gather and communicate permanently. Any scenario where each of us sits in front of a computer or other device will probably continue along much the same way, with cloud providers like Zoom, Google, Microsoft, and others making incremental changes to their software platforms to further simplify the way we interact with each other. What about scenarios where groups of people need to gather together around the same camera? Anyone who’s tried to huddle around a laptop knows the pain of trying to take a one-to-one technology design and adapt it to a group (many-to-one) setting. We’ve decided to focus on this “Zoomification” phenomenon at my integration business, Livewire, by helping people work…

The CEDIA Virtual Expo Experience included, of course, a virtual CEDIA Booth, and the booth played host to 2020’s round of CEDIA Talks. Here are some of the highlights from Michael Cogbill, Alex Capecelatro, Nathan Holmes, and Joe Whitaker. The Surveillance Show CEDIA Board Director Michael Cogbill began the Wednesday slate of sessions with a talk on “Trends in Video Surveillance.” The key point: It’s all digital now, of course. “The sweet spot for cameras will be 4K very soon in the IP universe,” Cogbill noted. And, the technologies that are advancing in this realm make the images better and better. “Low light images are improving dramatically, and WDR (Wide Dynamic Range) is a big help.” The example he gives for the latter: If a camera is sitting inside a…

With autumn now officially here, it’s “that time of year again.” No, I don’t mean the time of year when you complain about holiday decorations because it is still October. It’s the holiday season, and though it will definitely be different this year, there will still be new products to consider. Thus, we’re in the midst of new product introductions. This time, it’s Amazon’s turn. Perhaps at the heart of Amazon’s home device strategy are the Echo devices and the Alexa ecosystem that drives them. If sewing is your pandemic therapy, I suggest making some larger socks to hang on the mantle, as these will be at the heart of many gift hints and requests. Indeed, the fabric is a key part of the new Echo products. As has been…

Many things have changed since we all began to navigate the changes brought by COVID-19. Think of it: “take out” is the new “dine in,” where printed menus and even touch screens have given way to “contact-free transactions.” Meetings and events, from family visits to business meetings, everything from wedding celebrations to funerals and memorial services have gone virtual. Some things, however, still require physical contact: blood tests, injections, dialysis and infusions, radiation therapy, dentistry, chiropractic visits, surgery, “touch-intensive” physical exams, and the like. You simply can’t “phone those in.” On the other hand, as people in remote locations or where medical professionals are not geographically close, what is generally put under the umbrella of “telemedicine” has been helping people and saving lives for years. Thanks to “stay at home”…

Savant launched its Smart Audio Soundbar bundle earlier this year as a way to offer a complete home control and audio system solution integrated together. A Savant dealer can take the speaker bar, Savant Pro Remote Control, mount a TV, and that’s it. Nothing else required. This type of approach is novel and designed to deliver a profitable, all-in-one solution during an era when true surround sound installations are much less prevalent and soundbar installations have become the norm. Savant sent me their new Smart Audio WiSA Soundbar 55 bundled with two subwoofers, surround speakers, a Savant Metro Keypad, and the new Pro Remote X2. I knew this review would require me to strap on my toolbelt and do some serious custom installation work, but I felt up to the…

At the start of the 2020 global pandemic, video conferencing became the de facto remote communication tool, practically overnight, with the Microsoft Teams and Zoom platforms expanding beyond “enterprise” to become the platforms of choice for remote learning, family gatherings, and even Friday happy hours. Back in the pre-COVID-19 days, before home conferencing was so common, Crestron was working with enterprise business clients to make these types of experiences the best possible. Combining that expertise and its home automation know-how, the New Jersey-based manufacturer is now offering professional-grade home conferencing technology as a standalone solution, including multiple options for a dedicated home office or learning space, a living room, in front of the TV, “anywhere you Zoom,” or integrated into a Crestron smart home system. The Crestron Home Desktop solution…

Brilliant AV’s technology consultants often lead with The Frame TV by Samsung when discussing home tech options with their customers. Starting the conversation with The Frame creates a dialogue that is about design, not technology. Many of the Costa Mesa, CA, custom integrator’s clients care more about the look of their system than the specific features or technical specifications. Yes, they want it simple, but The Frame can look even better when professionally installed. This simplicity also inspired soundbar manufacturer Leon Speakers to create FrameBar, a discreet, ultra-thin soundbar that was designed to match the width and finish of The Frame TV. It’s already a hit with Brilliant AV, as they add their custom installation skills to an already elegant pair of products. “As a custom integrator, we can do…

In 2020, technology has reached a point of maturity; adoption and consumer education have begun to see consistent growth, particularly with mainstream and new-to-technology consumers. Smart home technology has become pervasive in the way we all live our lives. We reach to digital assistants to help us complete tasks, smart security cameras and systems are a large part of our culture, and technology that was once considered to be reserved for the wealthy or tech-savvy experts is now found on the shelves in large sections of “big-box” stores and wide swaths of the internet. This year, the entire global supply chain has seen an impact from COVID-19, including the smart home and consumer technology market. Even though we’ve seen factories begin to reopen, products are still facing major delays in…

A few years ago, a prospective client asked me why he should consider hiring us to engineer his theater room for high performance. He explained to me that he was adding this theater on the behest of his family (some of whom were in the film industry), but that he, himself, “didn’t know from average” when it came to audio and video quality. Just as I was getting ready to hop on my technical and authoritative “high horse,” I stopped myself, recalling that a very nice wine cellar was being planned for the home. “Sound is like fine wine,” I suggested. “When we first experience wine, we usually won’t know the difference between an average bottle and a very good one. But, as we continued to explore wines and learn…

Today’s homeowners are growing increasingly interested in residential wellness technologies. After all, while a few hundred years ago most of our lives took place outside, these days we spend up to 90 percent of our time indoors. The result is that indoor environmental conditions have a profound impact on our health, productivity, and overall well-being. And since our internal clocks – or circadian rhythms – still take their cues from the Earth’s natural lighting cycle, nothing has a greater effect than indoor lighting. Human-centric lighting (HCL) systems address this issue by rendering ideal natural lighting conditions indoors. Furthermore, an HCL system allows for customizable control over light color and intensity, regardless of the time of day. Set your “Awake” scene to mimic natural light before the sun comes up. Transition…